Cricket 1895

THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 1895. Together joined in Cricket’s manly toil.” — Byron. M r . C. J. EADY. Of cricket records, as has been said of the writing of books, there is apparently no end. Hardly a week during the summer, and now that the game in Australia is brought so directly in touch with us, as it has been in reporting the doings of Mr. Stoddart’s team, during the winter, but brings in its train some individual or collective score, some incident of batting or bowling which out-does every­ thing of the kind in the past. But there are records and records. The great high record monger, otherwise W. G. Grace, has, of course, had some which may be re­ garded as his exclusive copyright. One in particular occurs to my mind as I write. To him belongs, indeed, a distinction, unique in its way, as the only batsman who has made two scores of a hun­ dred in a first-class match. In this particularly respect his supremacy is absolutely un­ challenged, as his record will prove. Up to this winter, moreover, there were only two other cricketers who had done this once. And now to come into line with the three English batsmen, W. G. Grace, A. E. Stoddart, and G. Brann, there is a fourth — C. J. Eady, the subject of the present sketch. In his case, too, for­ tunately there can be no possible cause for disparaging the char­ acter of the match, and through that depreciating the quality of the feat. On the contrary, his performance was of the higher merit by reason of the fact that he was only out in the first inning8. His scores of 116 and 112 not out for Tas­ mania, were indeed worthy of the establishment of a new Australian record. y er« got, too, against Victoria, which is of itself sufficient to prove that the bowling was of a high class. Eady’s double hundred for Tasmania against Victoria in January is entitled to rank among the very best of Australian records. In testimony of the excellence of his batting, it need only be added that he only gave in the two innings one difficult chance, which was at the wicket. Unless I am mistaken Tasmania now holds the two records for Australia, that is assuming that E. H . Butler’s bowling performance ME. C. J. EADY. for the South against the North of Tas­ mania in 1881-82 has not been beaten. On that occasion Butler’s analysis was nineteen balls, six wickets, and no runs— figures which will take a lot of trouble to outdo, even in the records of the old country. Though his performance against Victoria has brought Eady prominently before the public it is not by any means his first good innings. More than once it has been Cricket's fortune to give details of Eady’s scoring in connection with’club cricket in Tasmania. For the last seven or eight years he has scored heavily and consistently for the Break of Day Club, of which, by the way, E. H. Butler is the captain. Latterly he has been making a name in a higher class of cricket. In 1893 he scored 88 not out against Victoria in Hobart; in 1894, in the same match at Melbourne, 20 and 55. His recent cricket has been quite good enough to entitle him to recognition as one of the coming batsmen of Australia. Some good critics even go so far as to claim that he ought to have been picked to play in one or other of the recent test matches, not only on the ground of his batting, but because in their judgment he is the best fast bowler in Australia. He did go to Melbourne it is true, and played more than one match for the Melbourne Club. Unfortunately, he hardly did himself justice, as was not altogether a surprise consider- ingthe differences of the grounds. None the less, there can be little doubt of that, he is one of the best all-round cricketers in Australia. He has tremendously powerful shoulders, and looks a young giant, stands about 6ft. 2in. high, and weighs, judging by appearances, about 15st. Although so powerful, defence is his strong point, and he wastes much of his strength in hitting the ball hard down close to the wicket. With a few lessons as to timing he would become a dangerous batsman. As already stated he is very much above the average as a fast bowler. Besides this he is one of the finest footballers in Australia.